The Oglethorpe men's basketball team fell behind the Spalding Golden Eagles by 19 points late in the first half Wednesday afternoon in Louisville, Kentucky, and, despite working their way back to within five points in the second half, eventually fell 77-69. The result dropped the Stormy Petrels to 4-7 on the season.
The Petrels used a 23-9 run bridged between the first and second halves to pull to within five points, 48-43, with 14:52 remaining in the contest, but the Golden Eagles pushed their advantage back out to 11 points quickly and led by as many as 12 points as the second half wore on. The Petrels again got to within five late in the game, but got no closer. Spalding's Brandon Goeing was just too much for the Petrels on the day, as he scored 29 points on 8 of 15 from 3-point range and 9 of 18 from the field overall. He scored 17 points on 5 of 9 from 3-point range in the first half.
Oglethorpe did get solid performances from several players. Sophomore forward Will Perry recorded his third straight double-double and his fourth of the season, scoring 15 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. In addition, he passed out a career-high six assists while going 5 for 10 from the field and 2 for 5 from the 3-point line. Junior guard Connor Smith finished with 14 points on 5 of 10 from the field and 4 of 7 from beyond the arc while passing out three assists. Sophomore guard Chris Lawrence again contributed a double-digit scoring effort, netting 16 points on 3 of 8 from long range.
After Spalding led by as many as 19 points in the first half, the Petrels cut the Golden Eagles' lead down to 48-43 with 14:52 left in the game. However, six straight points by Spalding pushed their lead back out to 11 points, 54-43, with 13:28 to go. Still down by 11, the Petrels began a 10-5 stretch over 2:10 that got them within six, 64-58. From there, the two sides traded baskets for a time before Spalding went on a 6-0 run to push their lead back out to 72-60 with 4:01 remaining. The Petrels answered with seven consecutive points to push to within just five again, 74-69 with 50 seconds left. Oglethorpe missed a 3-pointer that would've pulled them to within a single possession with 40 seconds left, though, and the Golden Eagles hit their free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Down 39-20 with 5:34 to go in the first half, Oglethorpe finished the period on an 11-4 run and pulled to within 12 at halftime, 43-31. The Petrels continued that run in the second half, coming out of the locker room with a 12-5 stretch over the first 5:08 of the period and pulling to within five points. In all, the visitors enjoyed a 23-9 run over 10:42, bridging from the end of the first half to the start of the second.
The Petrels built an early 11-8 lead with 14:59 remaining in the first half, but Spalding immediately went on a run to take the lead and never relinquished it. A 12-0 run by the Golden Eagles put them ahead 20-11 with 10:46 left in the period. After consecutive Oglethorpe baskets, Spalding went on a 19-6 spurt over four minutes to push their lead to 19 points.
Spalding shot 49 percent to Oglethorpe's 41 percent, including 50 percent from 3-point range to the Petrels' 35 percent. The home side also shot 75 percent from the free throw line to the visitors' 44 percent. The Petrels did outrebound the Golden Eagles 38-35, including 12-5 on the offensive glass.
"Our effort was really good today, but we didn't always play smart," said Head Coach Philip Ponder. "We also met them on the wrong day, as Goeing was on fire and hit some really tough shots. I was proud of the way we battled back, but we had too big a hole to climb out of. We have to learn from our mistakes and continue to grow. We are still much improved from where we stood a few weeks ago."
The Petrels will next go back out on the road to take on Huntingdon in Montgomery, Alabama, Sunday at 4 p.m. Eastern time. Though they did not play each other, the two teams saw each other at the Holiday Inn Express and Suites Tournament in Oglethorpe's Dorough Field House Dec. 20-21. The Hawks went 1-1, falling to Regis (Massachusetts) and defeating Mount St. Vincent, while the Petrels went 2-0 against the same two teams en route to the tournament title.